Camera on the picturesque town of Leavenworth
Levenworth is a city in Shelan County, Washington State, United States. The population was 2,263 at the 2020 census.
The entire city center is modeled after a German Bavarian village as part of a civic initiative started in the 1960s, with the help of the “Danish” Californian city of Solvang.
The city is a major, year-round tourist destination with festivals almost every month and many events year-round.
US 2 passes through the city.
The construction of the Great Northern Railroad through Tumwater Canyon in 1892 brought settlers to the town, which was named Levenworth. Lafayette Lamb arrived in 1903 from Clinton, Iowa, to build the second largest sawmill in Washington State.
Leavenworth was officially incorporated on September 5, 1906. Once a small timber village, it became a regional branch of the Great Northern Railway in the early 1900s. In 1925, the railroad moved to Wenatchee, which greatly impacted Leavenworth’s economy.
The town’s population declined until the 1950s as sawmills closed and stores moved